It’s been a little while since we’ve been in the Tree Kitchen but we’ve got something yummy that was too good to keep ourselves.

Who doesn’t love a good snack in the afternoon? We got creative and decided to make our very own homemade granola bars and even better, they’re no bake so you can toss it all together and pop it in the fridge to set…easy as! Scroll down for all the details!

Instructions

Measure out your ingredients into separate containers.

In a preheated oven set to 180, toast your oats (or purchase pre-toasted oats instead). If you nuts or seeds aren’t toasted already, pop them in too. Set a timer for 15 minutes but stir through regularly and remove from oven once they start to turn gold brown.

Remove pits from the dates and finely chop. Add into a large bowl with oats, nuts, seeds, chocolate chips and cranberries.

In a microwave safe container or on a stove top set to med-low, melt together the peanut butter, coconut oil, honey and maple syrup. Once it’s combined, add it into your date and nut mixture, mixing it in thoroughly.

At this point, the mixture should combine and you’ll be able to tell if it seems too dry or runny. If it’s too dry add a little more coconut oil / honey / maple syrup in small increments until the mixture is coated and binding. If it’s too runny, you may need to add more toasted oats / nuts until it’s binding well. What you’re aiming for is something that will set once it’s in the fridge and not crumble when cut into pieces.

Cover your baking dish with baking paper and more mixture in. Place it in the fridge until it’s firm and set. Leave for around a minimum of 4 hours.

Once the mixture is set, remove from the fridge and cut into pieces – you can cut into long bars or small squares. We had to share ours so we went small squares.

In a microwave set to low, melt your chocolate chips – it’s very easy to burn chocolate, so 10-20 second bursts with mixing in between will do the trick. Slow and low is the key to melting chocolate. Alternatively, use a bowl of boiling water and place a slightly larger bowl over that with chocolate chips, stirring regularly. Once your chocolate is glossy and runny, drizzle it across the squares of granola. You can coat it as little or much as you like, but be sure to do it on baking paper to make clean up quick and easy. You can pop them back in the fridge for a few minutes for the chocolate to set before serving.

Serve with a freshly brewed pot of tea and enjoy a yummy afternoon tea!

We love to see your creations so don’t forget to to tag your images on Instagram with #treeblog & #treeloves!